From Marx to McLuhan technology is theorized as an extension of the body
Evidence
From a classical (even cybernetic) perspective, technology is an extension of the body. It is the functional sophistication of a human organism that permits it to be equal to nature and to invest triumphally in nature. From Marx to McLuhan, the same functionalist vision of machines and language: they are relays, extensions, media mediators of nature ideally destined to become the organic body of man. In this “rational” perspective the body itself is nothing but a medium. — Jean Baudrillard, Simulacra and Simulation, 362
Categorization
- DEFINE: Codifies the classical ‘extension of the body’ thesis spanning Marx and McLuhan, against which Baudrillard sets Crash.
- XREF: This is the exact seam where Baudrillard splits from McLuhan; pairs with the reader’s Jameson/Marxist-vs-poststructuralist axis. — connects to: Discipline evolved from distributing bodies to composing forces into machines — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 247; Historical specificity distinguishes Marx’s materialism from vulgar or technological determinism — Hall, Stuart, Essential Essays, Volume 1, 881; A body becomes a useful force only when it is both productive and subjected — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 73 (+3 more)
Broader Connections
- Discipline evolved from distributing bodies to composing forces into machines
#exemplifies(0.75) — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 247 - A body becomes a useful force only when it is both productive and subjected
#exemplifies(0.73) — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 73 - Historical specificity distinguishes Marx’s materialism from vulgar or technological determinism
#complicates(0.72) — Hall, Stuart, Essential Essays, Volume 1, 881 - Morse anticipated the global village concept decades before McLuhan
#contradicts(0.70) — James W. Carey, Communication as Culture- Essays on…, 787